Old wounds: Honors delayed for 40 years

On Nov. 9, Theodore Harvey received a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star, 41 years and three days after his discharge from the Army on Nov. 6, 1971.

Harvey, a 78-year-old Mescalero resident, was slated to receive numerous awards but left the Army before he could receive the commendations.

From then on, he became lost in the system until this year, when a social worker at the Mescalero Care Center, Ann McConathy, put some wheels in motion and contacted a Veterans Affairs office.

Fighting through piles of convoluted and foreign paperwork while trying to work with Harvey, deafened during his combat tours brought her nearly to despair on the project, McConathy said.

"And then, I don't know if it was the hand of God or what, but in walked Harold Oakes," she said.

Oakes, commander of American Legion Post 79, had visited the care center to check on another veteran who was going to be transferred there after a heart attack, he said.

After meeting with McConathy, Oakes volunteered the services of Doug Sabo, service officer for the American Legion Post 79 and Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 1062.

"It takes about a month to get (a veteran's) full, official records," Sabo said. "When I looked them over, my god, it was impressive. He was an airborne ranger deserving of a Bronze Star and it said, right in his records, that he was never issued it. He was a jump master, he was a ranger - he was a warrior.

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Honored at last

After reading through Harvey's records, Sabo then brought Oakes and Jerry Ligon, commander of VVA Chapter 1062 into the mix, and asked the two groups to set some money aside to honor Harvey properly, he said.

"The three of us said, 'we're going to do this,'" he said. "Jerry Ligon, the one who pinned on (Harvey's) Purple Heart, he was wounded three times in Vietnam. We honored him, in a way, by letting him pin on the Purple Heart. This was all about Mr. Harvey being honored by others that share the same blood."

And Harvey was honored.

The ceremony brought residents from across Mescalero and drew representatives from several politicians, but the moments that brought tears to Harvey's eyes were not the speeches he couldn't hear, but the support of other veterans and the sight of his awards.

Politely watching as the speeches rolled on, Harvey stole glances down to the plaques in his hands and the medals on his chest, scarcely seeming to believe they were there.

As the ceremony wound to a close, the veterans at the ceremony stood one final time, saluting Harvey. He stood, looking about for a moment, before his hand rose and he returned the honor.

By Monday the awards were the only disruption to Harvey's regimented life at the care center. His bed was properly turned out, his walker was stowed by a small table and his magazines lay stacked in neatly spaced columns - hallmarks of the discipline that was part of the 17 years of military life.

Flipping through the pages of a National Geographic magazine from July, 2003, Harvey pointed out the cover article, "Divided Korea."

Harvey lingered most on the portraits of war and of the military zones, passing quickly over the unfamiliar scenes of festivals.

"I was there twice," he said, pausing as he flipped to portraits of U.S. and Korean soldiers. "That was me, I was the infantry."

Those left behind

This isn't the first time Sabo has chased down missing medals or benefits for veterans, even before he became a service officer.

Sabo said he will graduate from New Mexico State University in May with a degree in social services, a platform from which he can further lend a hand to veterans in need.

"I have a son who's an ex-Navy Seal, he has (post-traumatic stress disorder)," he said. "I have a stepson who is in the Army now. When my son came back from Afghanistan, he had major problems. There are veterans out there that need help. I'm getting a degree in social services so I can better understand them and help them."

Like a worry stone worn smooth by repetition, the names and stories of many veterans that were left by the wayside remain fresh in Sabo's mind.

A disabled paratrooper left without income or employment opportunities called Sabo several weeks ago to share the good news that he finally gained disability status after Sabo lent a hand. An ex-Coast Guard sailor injured in the Iraq war who can't move without pain also looked to Sabo for help with benefits. Another young soldier in a small village turned to him for help, "because there just isn't anyone else to turn to," Sabo said.

Many veterans express similar fears and trials dealing with the Department of Veterans Affairs, notorious for delays and denials of care to veterans, he said.

"You have to know how to work the system," he said. "You have to word things properly so the VA understands, like with (my disability application). I get headaches so bad I can't see, it's like somebody stabbed me with an ice pick - I can't move, I can't see. The bureaucracy of the VA is so thick, I swear they want to tell you, 'no, you don't deserve it,' just so they don't have to deal with you anymore. The VA may not be helpful unless you know how to ask for help."

For those alone with PTSD, gaining benefits can be even more difficult, he added.

PTSD rates fell to 13.8 percent for Iraqi war veterans compared to 30.9 percent in Vietnam veterans, according to a study by Richard J. McNally, published on May 18 in Science magazine (http://www.sciencemag.org/content/302/5642/49.1.full?sid=db392e99-a2e1-4726-b860-899c3a0f39de).

McNally attributed the fall to more widespread understanding and acceptance of the disorder, and a corresponding advance in treatments.

But the issue is far from over, though many treatments, including on-the-job training to deal with the stress, were available, he cautioned.

"A lot of people coming out of Vietnam were spit upon, ridiculed, ignored," Sabo said. "Like many other service members, myself included, (Harvey) has PTSD. At times he has violent fits, depression, some people turn to alcoholism. He was found a number of years ago, half-dead, lying in a vacant house. He was basically thrown away by society."

Harvey's own family, at a loss for what they could do and ignorant of Harvey's records, had left him behind as well, Sabo said.

"Part of the reason I did this, I explained to his daughter, to his niece; I said, 'this is who he was, he was an honorable, respected warrior who served his country," he said. "What happened afterwards was because of PTSD. His daughter, who hadn't talked to him in years, cried. She didn't know all of this. Now she came back and honored her father. That's the story behind this - because of PTSD, and some of the real problems, the crap that we go through, families don't know what to do with soldiers coming back."

Sabo said he remained available for any veteran in Lincoln County that needs help through email, des56@valornet.com, or by phone, (575) 937-9196. American Legion, VVA, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Disabled American Veterans services are available. For more information, contact Oakes for American Legion, (575) 378-6254, commander@al79nm.org; Ligon for VVA, (575) 808-1114, lair4ja@valornet.com; Dave Fouse for VFW, (575) 973-4965, vfwnm@hughes.net; Alan McMillen, (575) 437-2741, alan@alamogordotitle.com.